Are parents teaching their kids to drive or are they playing on their damn phone

[gregk]

We had a 30 Year old killed sat. In Eau Claire when a minor with a woman adult cut in front of a guy on a crotch rocket and he split his helmet in two. A friend saw the helmet. The biker smashed the hell out of the mini van.
 Think it was mid April when a minor in a pickup took two on a bike along the Mississippi river(may have been the flood run) a don't know if they are alive or if in intensive care.
  So what happens when a minor with a learners permit kills a biker?

[cookiedough]

same as an adult who has been driving longer, but am sure would hate to see his vehicle insurance (actually his parents probably) rates go WAY up to a level that NO parent could afford. 

I hear yah on teenage drivers on phones either texting or f'ing around on them all the time.  My neighbors kid just will not admit it, but she said she was looking down at something and hit a mailbox doing 2100 damage to the front of their newer mazda SUV and of course NO more mailbox doing 45 mph or so. 

My kids, so far as I know,  are NOT on their phones while driving and better not be caught since those are the ones who I worry about in that age bracket.  Am I the only adult who can live easily without a smartphone?  240 bucks per month for 4 cell phones is a car payment - geesh!   

[old2soon]

Seen videos of "people" walking into walls doors and those open basement thingys in the sidewalks you see in big cities. AND AND most of the walkers when not walking drive and-TEXT!  Have NO idea if it's true or not but a current t v commercial sez young folks use their cell phones on average 282 minutes Every Day! 4.7 hours!  I know I don't use my phone That much in a month. Far as what happens to a kid on a learners permit when he kills a motorcyclist? Same thing that happens to adults who kill a motorcyclist-Not Very Much.  RIDE SAFE.

[Hooter]

What do these kids see?? Their parents texting and driving so it's OK for them to do it. Monkey see monkey do.  How can parents that text and drive tell their kids they can't?  This is a no win situation!

[Ramie]

If it was up to me everyone of the young'ens would have to go to the scene of traffic death and help them pull the body from the wreak.  I helped do that when I was 15 years old and witnessed an accident when a driver fell asleep at the wheel and knocked the rear tandem axle off a cement truck on the other side of the road, makes a kid think.

[Moonshot_1]

The accident is still under investigation. It is entirely possible the bike rider could have run a red light and hit the van. We don't know if there was a phone involved. Don't know anything really.

Saw the photo of the van. The bike must have been traveling at a rather high rate of speed to cause that kind of damage. This was a controlled intersection on a 4 lane road. A fast moving bike coming through traffic at such an intersection can easily not be seen at all till it is too late.

We ride motorcycles. It is inherently dangerous. We have to realize that while there are idiots we must watch for at all times on the road, we constantly put ourselves in situations that make it hard for even experienced, attentive, and thoughtful drivers to see us.
This accident is a case in point with a controlled intersection on a 4 lane road which is traveled heavily and a speed limit (45 mph at that point) that is quite fast for that particular area.

Again, I don't know what happened but suppose the kid in the van is going to make a left and there is an oncoming truck and the kid knows he can easily make the turn. The truck in the on coming left lane is hiding the fast approaching motorcycle in the oncoming right lane. 30 year old on a crotch rocket in a  45 mph zone is doing 65.  Easy to do. Doesn't realize that there could be someone turning in front of him and he isn't slowing down because the truck blocks his vision of the intersection. All he sees is his green light.

I don't know if there was a truck. But I'd be willing to bet there was something obstructing their vision.
The kid didn't see the bike and the rider didn't see the van turn because the damage on the van would suggest an impact at a rather high speed. He didn't slow down. Much.

So, the investigation continues on this accident. It is entirely possible that it was not the kid in the minivans fault. It is possible the kid was playing Space Invaders on his phone while making the left turn.

We ride motorcycles. Every intersection, every highway line that goes by brings a multitude of possibilities we must account for and be ready to react to. The more traffic, the greater the odds of bad things happening.

As to this accident, I looked at the intersection on Google Maps. Seen the photo of the van.
This is a controlled intersection on a 4 lane road.
It seems to be a well traveled road with moderate traffic.
Given the damage to the van I would say the bike was going way too fast for the intersection.
Likely there was traffic at the light, kid made the turn and bike came from nowhere.

[old2soon]

If it was up to me everyone of the young'ens would have to go to the scene of traffic death and help them pull the body from the wreak.  I helped do that when I was 15 years old and witnessed an accident when a driver fell asleep at the wheel and knocked the rear tandem axle off a cement truck on the other side of the road, makes a kid think.

                    I was driving a wrecker at 15. One Sunday morning stands out after all these years. 2 cars got together head on. Multiple deaths. When I arrived on scene I got out of the cab and discovered they hadn't quite removed all the victims. THAT scene comes out of it's particular lock box now and then. Veteran Cops lost their breakfast that day as did I. To put a point on it-VERY aware of What WILL happen when one do NOT pay attention whilst under the wheel. RIDE SAFE.

[art]

same as an adult who has been driving longer, but am sure would hate to see his vehicle insurance (actually his parents probably) rates go WAY up to a level that NO parent could afford. 

I hear yah on teenage drivers on phones either texting or f'ing around on them all the time.  My neighbors kid just will not admit it, but she said she was looking down at something and hit a mailbox doing 2100 damage to the front of their newer mazda SUV and of course NO more mailbox doing 45 mph or so. 

My kids, so far as I know,  are NOT on their phones while driving and better not be caught since those are the ones who I worry about in that age bracket.  Am I the only adult who can live easily without a smartphone?  240 bucks per month for 4 cell phones is a car payment - geesh!   

got a cheap flip phone at less than $10 a month and do not ans. when driving.

[art]

Many years ago (around 60) my dad who was a firefighter in Ma. told us of an accident where a biker lost control and slid under the back of a car and was impaled on the exhaust pipe through his head. They had a hard time with that accident. I had one in 68 when I t-boned a pontiac with my Norton. I jumped up off the seat at impact and cleared the car and landed on the road passed the car an walked away from a 50 mph crash. My Son did the same thing a few years ago. At impact he jumped and landed on the car trunk an walked away. Sure beats hitting hard parts.

[czuch]

Dear old Dd took me to the ER when I was a week away from my first driving test.
Things were slow till about 9:30pm. Then, it got hoppin.
I couldn't speak for about two days.
The Doctors were in on it and somehow, every one that could got wheeled by me.

[gregk]

Mike, from what you checked out your right, everyone is driving faster around here. And we may never be told what happened but there is cameras at that intersection so the cops should be able to figure it out but will keep it under hat. That roadway is busy because it is the orig. U.S. Hwy 53 going from Chippewa to Eau Claire . Only thing is that mother should of been paying attention and gave instruction to that kid to keep her stopped.
 I'm going to ad here you know we all have to be alert especially when you see idiots cannot even see cars. I will tell you this in a 25 mph zone This Year at a clear intersection non controlled except 3 stop signs,  i was in my car, I had the right of way making a left with no stop sign. 2 diff. times 2 women opposing me took off from the stop into me. Women drivers right ! Guess again, 3rd time was a G.D. guy in a cement truck, and yes i had the signal in plenty of time.

[gregk]

Thanks Cookiedough, I wasn't sure how they rated minors. I have a brother that lives close to the other girl that had the other accident and he feels she is still running around. I told them that is here say because they only seen the truck an ant not actually seen her. I will be telling people about the accident at the WI.State A.B.A.T.E. party this weekend when we go sat.

[Moonshot_1]

Mike, from what you checked out your right, everyone is driving faster around here. And we may never be told what happened but there is cameras at that intersection so the cops should be able to figure it out but will keep it under hat. That roadway is busy because it is the orig. U.S. Hwy 53 going from Chippewa to Eau Claire . Only thing is that mother should of been paying attention and gave instruction to that kid to keep her stopped.
 I'm going to ad here you know we all have to be alert especially when you see idiots cannot even see cars. I will tell you this in a 25 mph zone This Year at a clear intersection non controlled except 3 stop signs,  i was in my car, I had the right of way making a left with no stop sign. 2 diff. times 2 women opposing me took off from the stop into me. Women drivers right ! Guess again, 3rd time was a G.D. guy in a cement truck, and yes i had the signal in plenty of time.

I guess the last point I'll make here (maybe) is that the evidence of impact on the side of the van indicates a lot of energy meaning the speed of the bike must have been, at least to me, excessive.
That kind of speed going into such an intersection is suicide. Whether you operate a cage or bike, these busy intersections demand caution and vigilance. At some point there will be a definitive conclusion. Maybe the cameras will provide the evidence to determine what actually happened.

But the bottom line is always assume someone is going to make a turn in these kind of intersections and be ready and take your time through them. Just because the light is green doesn't give anyone special powers.

This brings me to a question.
Suppose you are going to make a left turn at just such an intersection. 4 lane.
The oncoming traffic is moderate. You wait for the opportunity to turn.
Oncoming traffic is going by at about 45 mph. The traffic clears for a moment and you can make the turn in front of an oncoming car in the right lane with no problem. 6 car lengths behind the oncoming car and in the other lane is a bike doing 65 mph and as you make the turn the bike passes the oncoming car and closes at a rate that will impact you.

The car you based your judgement on you cleared in ample time.  The bike, at the time you made your judgement, was not there. The car was at the speed limit. The bike is not.

Is this your fault?

My opinion would be no.

[Pappy!]

My wife is teaching her grand daughter to drive (at almost 18yrs old!!!). The kid thinks its okay to text while at a stop light.....................
First time she did it Lesa made her stop the car, get out and Lesa took over.